Team science skills are necessary for effective inter- and intra-professional research team performance. Studies have shown that there is insufficient training in team science.[1,2,7,8] We developed TeamMAPPS (Team Methods to Advance Processes and Performance in Science), a team science curriculum based in evidence from the Science of Team Science (SciTS) and the science of teams.[1] Similar to the COALESCE program,[7] TeamMAPPS is delivered in a series of online education modules with optional guided facilitation that can take many forms. TeamMAPPS is a behavioral based training program, emphasizing nine specific behavioral skills organized around three competencies (Psychological Safety, Awareness and Exchange, and Adaptation and Correction). The intended audience of adult scientists made it vital to ensure that this program was designed specifically to meet the needs of adult learners using the evidence-based best practices of andragogy, the study of adult education. Malcolm Knowles (1980) defined a framework for andragogy, which recognizes that adult learners have specific drivers and motivations for learning that require adaptation of traditional training methods and learning environments, which are designed for youth. The online modules and implementation materials used to deliver TeamMAPPS therefore integrate key tenets of Knowles’ framework into their core design. This poster describes how andragogical principles were integrated with evidence-based team science practices to ensure that TeamMAPPS effectively delivered content in a manner acceptable to adult learners.

Many educational programs are based on traditional assumptions that the student is dependent upon the teacher, whether the teacher is a physical person or merely conceptual (e.g., AI or a directed software application), to determine “what is to be learned, when it is to be learned, how it is to be learned, and if it has been learned.”[4] The study of andragogy illuminates the adult learner’s need for self-directed learning, rather than the more traditional, teacher-led viewpoint. Thus, adult learning theory is particularly germane to scientific trainees and experience researchers alike[10].

Andragogical studies show six key principles that motivate adult learners: adult learners need to know why what they are learning is meaningful to them and how they can apply it; they come to the learning program with a variety of professional backgrounds and experience; they tend towards independent, self-directed learning driven by the need for autonomy; the learning experiences need to be flexible and readily available to them when they have time; the learning must be practical and focus on solutions to relevant, real-world problems; and the learning must provide some sort of intrinsic motivation to aid in self-actualization.[4,9,5,3]

The TeamMAPPS program designed the learning materials, organization, activities, and user interface with these principles in mind to maximize learning efficacy[6]. A dissemination and implementation study is being conducted to discover qualitative reactions from TeamMAPPS implementers and participants. An evaluation study of learning outcomes involving pre-post quizzes and in-module questions is also being conducted. Findings from these studies will shed light on the effectiveness of TeamMAPPS, including the impact of the andragogical theory incorporated into the online modules and delivery plans.